30 Hurt When Ferry Makes Hard Landing in NYC

A fire official said the ferry was traveling faster than normal before it hit a dock. Checkey Beckford reports.

(Published Friday, July 28, 2017)

A New York Water Taxi made a hard landing against the dock at a ferry terminal on Manhattan's West Side Friday evening, injuring at least 30 people, fire officials say.

The FDNY says the vessel struck Pier 79, near Lincoln Tunnel on the West Side, on Friday just after 4 p.m.

FDNY Manhattan Borough Commander Roger Sakowich said the man at the helm of the ferry wasn't able to stop as the boat moved too quickly to the dock.

"It was going a little faster than normal," Sakowich said. "He was reversing, didn't reverse as quick as he thought, and he hit abruptly. The people who were getting ready to disembark, a lot of them were thrown forward."

Witnesses also said it felt like the ferry was going to fast before it suddenly slammed into the dock. Some said they saw passengers violently lurched forward upon impact.

Thirty people had injuries ranging from minor to serious, but none are life-threatening, according to fire officials. Most injuries were to passengers' heads and backs; at least one child had a head injury.

Fire officials initially said some passengers were being evaluated for minor injuries, mostly bumps and bruises.

EMS were evaluating people sitting on benches near a ferry dock, and several people were seen on stretchers.

Lesbia Fuentes was on the ferry with her young daughter when it hit the dock.

"It was horrible, it was the worst experience of my life," Fuentes said, adding that her daughter had a minor injury.